The document provides 5 tips for writing effective press releases: 1) Focus on what interests journalists, not your organization, 2) Grab attention with a compelling headline, 3) Tailor your release to specific media outlets by understanding their needs and deadlines, 4) Write the release like a news story by including essential details journalists need, and 5) Keep the language simple and concise, ideally limiting the release to one page. It also provides a template for the typical structure of a press release.

1. 5 Top Tips for Writing Press
Releases:
Karen Ackerman
Director of Mediastories
www.mediastories.co.uk
info@mediastories.co.uk
@kazackerman

2. Mediastories
Top tips for press releases
It’s not about you:
The point of a press release is to get your story in the paper.
Think about what the journalist wants, not what you want!
No one is interested in your new report… your new initiative blah
blah blah… All they want to know is, what’s the story.
Tell them what they need.
Keep asking yourself…
So what?
Get their attention fast:
Journalists are busy people… You need to get their attention with
a great headline and make things simple for them.
Know your media:
Get to know your local or relevant media. Know what kind of
stories they are looking for and their deadlines.
Do their job for them:
Tell them a story.
Lay out clearly the who, what, when and how of the story.
Think like a journalist. What do they need? If you can provide
• A clear story with an angle
• One or two interesting facts
• A good case study who is ready to be interviewed
• A good quote
• Clear contact information
Keep it simple
Cut out all the jargon, management speak and formal language.
Write simply, like a real person.
Keep it short. One page ideally.

3. Mediastories
Top tips for press releases
Template for a press release:
Heading
Catchy, snappy headline
For immediate release: [date]
If you are happy for the story to be used now.
Embargoed for: [time/date]
If you want the journalist to wait until a specific time.
Paragraph 1
What’s the story? Who, what, when, why. So what!
Paragraph 2
More information about the story
Paragraph 3:
Short quotes from relevant people. Case study details.
Paragraph 4:
Extra information if there is any.
Ends
Notes for Editors
More background information about your organisation. If they
have room for a longer article this may be useful.
Details of any case studies, photos and other things that will help
the journalist write their story.
Contact
Phone and email contact information for night and day to ensure
they can get hold of someone for their deadline.
Mediastories:

4. Mediastories
Top tips for press releases
Karen, recently combined her15 years experience in television
production and 3 years managing training programmes at the UK's
leading media training provider, the BBC Academy to set up
mediastories.
At mediastories, her passion for storytelling and training combine
together to help charities, voluntary organisations and community
groups to gain the digital media skills they need to tell their stories with
the most impact
Karen trained as a journalist, starting her career at BBC Five Live. She
then spent 15 years working in television including 10 as a producer at
the BBC on programmes such as Blue Peter.
She then spent three years working for the BBC Academy, the largest
and most prestigious training department in the UK media sector,
running an innovative project to help BBC staff learn new skills by
working with charities and other non profits and helping them with their
media. She is also a trustee of the international development charity
Tzedek.
Mediastories can help you with film making, story telling and train your
team to communicate your success with more impact.
www.mediastories.co.uk